Lakiesha Hawkins delivers Human Landing System update at the 2020 Small Business Alliance meeting at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center's Davidson Center.

Lakiesha Hawkins, Assistant Deputy Associate Administrator for the Moon to Mars (M2M) Program within the Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate (ESDMD), takes a peek at the Payload Adapter test article at Marshall Space Flight Center. The adapter, which will debut on NASA’s Artemis IV mission, is an evolution from the Orion stage adapter used in the Block 1 configuration of the rocket for the first three Artemis missions. It will be housed inside the universal stage adapter atop the rocket’s more powerful in-space stage, called the exploration upper stage. The payload adapter, like the launch vehicle stage adapter and the Orion stage adapter, is fully manufactured and tested at Marshall, which manages the SLS Program.

Lilian Villarreal, Artemis II landing and recovery director for Exploration Ground Systems at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, left, and Lakiesha Hawkins, acting deputy associate administrator for NASA's Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate, right, are seen as they walk around the agency’s Orion spacecraft in the well deck of USS John P. Murtha, Saturday, April 11, 2026, at Naval Base San Diego in California. NASA’s Artemis II mission, which took NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, commander; Victor Glover, pilot; Christina Koch, mission specialist; and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen, mission specialist on a nearly 10-day journey around the Moon and back to Earth, splashed down at 5:07 p.m. PDT (8:07 p.m. EDT) on April 10 in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

Lilian Villarreal, Artemis II landing and recovery director for Exploration Ground Systems at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, right, speaks with Janet Petro, director of NASA's Kennedy Space Center, left, and Lakiesha Hawkins, acting deputy associate administrator for NASA's Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate, center, as they look at the agency’s Orion spacecraft in the well deck of USS John P. Murtha, Saturday, April 11, 2026, at Naval Base San Diego in California. NASA’s Artemis II mission, which took NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, commander; Victor Glover, pilot; Christina Koch, mission specialist; and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen, mission specialist on a nearly 10-day journey around the Moon and back to Earth, splashed down at 5:07 p.m. PDT (8:07 p.m. EDT) on April 10 in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

Lilian Villarreal, Artemis II landing and recovery director for Exploration Ground Systems at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, left, and Lakiesha Hawkins, acting deputy associate administrator for NASA's Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate, right, are seen as they walk around the agency’s Orion spacecraft in the well deck of USS John P. Murtha, Saturday, April 11, 2026, at Naval Base San Diego in California. NASA’s Artemis II mission, which took NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, commander; Victor Glover, pilot; Christina Koch, mission specialist; and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen, mission specialist on a nearly 10-day journey around the Moon and back to Earth, splashed down at 5:07 p.m. PDT (8:07 p.m. EDT) on April 10 in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

NASA Assistant Deputy Associate Administrator for the Moon to Mars Program Office Lakiesha Hawkins, left, takes a picture with attendees of the 30th annual ESSENCE Fest in New Orleans on July 5.

Lakiesha Hawkins, acting deputy associate administrator for NASA's Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate speaks to members of the media during NASA’s Artemis II SLS (Space Launch System) rocket and Orion spacecraft rollout to Launch Complex 39B at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026. In the coming weeks, engineers will prepare for the wet dress rehearsal, a two-day test that simulates launch day. The Artemis II test flight will take Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor Glover, and Mission Specialist Christina Koch from NASA, and Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen from the CSA (Canadian Space Agency), around the Moon and back to Earth no later than April 2026. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

Lakiesha Hawkins, acting deputy associate administrator for NASA's Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate, speaks to the crew of USS John P. Murtha, NASA Landing and Recovery teams, and the agency’s U.S. military recovery partners in the well deck of John P. Murtha, Saturday, April 11, 2026, at Naval Base San Diego after supporting recovery operations for NASA’s Artemis II mission. The agency’s Artemis II mission, which took NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, commander; Victor Glover, pilot; Christina Koch, mission specialist; and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen, mission specialist on a nearly 10-day journey around the Moon and back to Earth, splashed down at 5:07 p.m. PDT (8:07 p.m. EDT) on April 10 in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

NASA Assistant Deputy Associate Administrator for the Moon to Mars Program Office Lakiesha Hawkins, left, and NASA Director of Engagement Aya Collins are shown at the Take Up Space (Literally) panel conversation during the 30th annual ESSENCE Fest in New Orleans on July 5.

NASA Assistant Deputy Associate Administrator for the Moon to Mars Program Office Lakiesha Hawkins, left, and NASA Director of Engagement Aya Collins, right, talk about opportunities with NASA at the Take Up Space (Literally) panel conversation during the ESSENCE Fest event in New Orleans on July 5.

The crew of USS John P. Murtha takes a group picture with Lakiesha Hawkins, acting deputy associate administrator for NASA's Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate, Janet Petro, director of NASA's Kennedy Space Center, and Lilian Villarreal, Artemis II landing and recovery director for Exploration Ground Systems at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in the well deck of John P. Murtha, Saturday, April 11, 2026, at Naval Base San Diego after supporting recovery operations for NASA’s Artemis II mission. The agency’s Artemis II mission, which took NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, commander; Victor Glover, pilot; Christina Koch, mission specialist; and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen, mission specialist on a nearly 10-day journey around the Moon and back to Earth, splashed down at 5:07 p.m. PDT (8:07 p.m. EDT) on April 10 in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

NASA representatives are shown at the 30th annual ESSENCE Fest in New Orleans on July 5. Pictured left to right: Aya Collins, director of engagement; Michelle Bascoe, management analyst; Lakiesha Hawkins, assistant deputy associate administrator for the Moon to Mars Program Office; Zudayyah Taylor-Dunn, chief knowledge officer for Space Operations Mission Directorate; and Miyoshi Collins, program specialist.

Girls United co-founder Rechelle Dennis, left, moderates a conversation with NASA Assistant Deputy Associate Administrator for the Moon to Mars Program Office Lakiesha Hawkins, center, and NASA Director of Engagement Aya Collins at the Take Up Space (Literally) panel presentation during the 30th annual ESSENCE Fest in New Orleans on July 5.

Girls United co-founder Rechelle Dennis, left, introduces NASA Assistant Deputy Associate Administrator for the Moon to Mars Program Office Lakiesha Hawkins, center, and NASA Director of Engagement Aya Collins, right, for a Take Up Space (Literally) panel conversation during the 30th annual ESSENCE Fest event in New Orleans on July 5.

Girls United co-founder Rechelle Dennis, left, continues a conversation about how to become a shining star in the face of adversity with NASA Assistant Deputy Associate Administrator for the Moon to Mars Program Office Lakiesha Hawkins, center, and NASA Director of Engagement Aya Collins at the Take Up Space (Literally) panel conversation during the 30th annual ESSENCE Fest in New Orleans on July 5.

From left, Kelvin Manning, acting center director, NASA’s Kennedy Space Center; Shawn Quinn, Exploration Ground Systems program manager; Lakiesha Hawkins, assistant deputy associate administrator, Moon to Mars Program office; Howard Hu, Orion program manager; Debbie Korth, Orion deputy program manager, participate in a handover ceremony of NASA’s Artemis II Orion spacecraft to crews with the agency’s Exploration Ground Systems Program at the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Thursday, May 1, 2025. The spacecraft will be transported to the Multi-Payload Processing Facility to undergo fueling and processing for prelaunch operations. The Artemis II test flight is the first crewed flight under NASA’s Artemis campaign and is another step toward missions on the lunar surface and helping the agency prepare for future human missions to Mars.

From left, Kelvin Manning, acting center director, NASA’s Kennedy Space Center; Shawn Quinn, Exploration Ground Systems program manager; Lorna Kenna, Amentum Vice President and program manager; Lakiesha Hawkins, assistant deputy associate administrator, Moon to Mars Program office; Howard Hu, Orion program manager; Debbie Korth, Orion deputy program manager; Keith Shireman Lockheed Martin Vice President of Lunar Exploration Campaign, participate in a handover ceremony of NASA’s Artemis II Orion spacecraft to crews with the agency’s Exploration Ground Systems Program at the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Thursday, May 1, 2025. The spacecraft will be transported to the Multi-Payload Processing Facility to undergo fueling and processing for prelaunch operations. The Artemis II test flight is the first crewed flight under NASA’s Artemis campaign and is another step toward missions on the lunar surface and helping the agency prepare for future human missions to Mars.